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'Look forward to having him': Colts RB Jonathan Taylor to practice Wednesday, could play Sunday
Joel A. Erickson
Indianapolis Star

INDIANAPOLIS — The Colts will get Jonathan Taylor back on the practice field Wednesday.

They might get him back on the Lucas Oil turf against the Titans on Sunday.

Taylor has been on the team’s physically unable to perform list since the beginning of the training camp in order to rehabilitate the ankle he had surgically repaired in January, and at the same time, the running back has been locked in a contentious standoff with the Colts over the state of his contract.

“He’ll be back with the team, he’s practicing Wednesday,” head coach Shane Steichen said. “Had great conversations with him. He’s super-excited to be back with his teammates, and I look forward to having him.”


More:What's next for Jonathan Taylor and the Colts? A look at all the options

The state of contract negotiations remains in limbo.

Indianapolis Colts general manager Chris Ballard said he does not plan to offer Taylor an extension until his rookie contract expires at the end of the season, citing the team’s 2022 collapse and a desire to see how Taylor fits in Steichen’s offense. In response to that position, Taylor — who has seen the team reward stars like Quenton Nelson and Shaquille Leonard, among others, before the final year of their rookie contracts began — requested a trade at the beginning of training camp, and although Colts owner Jim Irsay balked at the idea at first, Taylor was ultimately granted permission to seek a trade at the end of training camp.


No team met the Colts’ demands.

“Jonathan is valuable, and at the end of the day, I’m not going to just let him walk out the door,” Ballard said at the time. “I’m not going to do that. That’s not the best thing for the Colts and the organization.”

Neither Taylor nor the team have commented on the contract standoff since the end of training camp.


But Taylor is eligible to come off the PUP list now, and Indianapolis plans to use the former All-Pro if he’s ready.

“He’s in good shape, conditioning-wise,” Steichen said. “Obviously, putting on the pads and practicing is a different deal. I know it’s been a long time since he’s played football. We’ll see how practice goes this week, see where he’s at physically, from putting the pads on, and we’ll go from there.”

The Colts head coach has stayed in contact with Taylor throughout the entire ordeal.

“The conversations I’ve had with him have been great through this whole deal,” Steichen said. “He’s in a good spot.”

If Taylor is fully healthy, the running back could form a devastating tandem with rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson, who has already proven he’s an explosive complement in the running game.

Veteran backup Zack Moss has rushed 66 times for 280 yards and a touchdown in three games during Taylor’s absence, but he’s averaging just 4.2 yards per carry and lacks Taylor’s ability to turn any run into a game-breaking play. A bruiser who doesn’t have Taylor’s breakaway speed, Moss’s longest run through the first three games is 24 yards.

“You like the fact that hey, you hand the guy the ball, he bounces a run, that thing might go for 60,” Colts running backs coach DeAndre Smith said last week. “And that’s what you need, those chunk plays.”


Even the threat of those chunk plays might be enough to take some of the attention off Richardson, who has 131 rushing yards, averages 5.7 yards per carry and has already scored four touchdowns despite missing almost two games.

The presence of Taylor also gives the Colts an option to give their running backs some rest, a luxury Moss hasn’t enjoyed the past three weeks. Moss has played 173 of a possible 205 snaps the past three weeks, an 84% share of the snaps that is unsustainable over a full season.

A healthy Taylor would be the Indianapolis starter.

But the emergence of Moss in the past eight games with Taylor sidelined also means the Colts do not have to ask Taylor to take every single carry.

“You add a guy back like J.T., and then you know, Zack and Anthony, you’ve got three guys who are really good runners,” Steichen said. “Then there can be some times where you have breather plays, where Anthony’s not always running zone read or something, and you just hand off to 28 or Zack and go play ball.”


The key now is getting a feel for Taylor’s conditioning in practice this week.

Taylor has not practiced yet, to be sure, but other NFL stars — notably San Francisco defensive end Nick Bosa, Kansas City defensive tackle Chris Jones and New Orleans running back Alvin Kamara — have returned to full workloads almost immediately despite absences of varying lengths.

“I think, obviously, just seeing how practice goes, feeling him, where he’s at from a football standpoint,” Steichen said. “Obviously, the conditioning, he’s been working his tail off with the rehab process, he’s feeling good. We’ll have those conversations throughout the week and then make that decision.”

After everything that’s happened, Taylor could be on the field against Tennessee this weekend, forcing defenders to make a catch-28 decision between the explosiveness of an All-Pro back and a dynamic rookie quarterback.

“If he feels good,” Steichen said, “we’ll rotate him in if he’s ready to go.”